Resist composition and resist patterning process

A resist composition, comprising:

• (A) a sulfonium salt containing an anion and a cation, the cation comprising:
• a partial structure shown by the following general formula (A1);
• and
• (B) a polymer compound containing a repeating unit shown by the following general formula (B1),
• wherein Rfa and Rfb each independently represent a fluoroalkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms;
• RXa represents a hydrogen atom or an acid-liable group;
• Ra and Rb each independently represent a hydrogen atom or a monovalent hydrocarbon group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms optionally containing a hetero atom, Ra and Rb are optionally bonded with each other to form a ring together with the carbon atom to which Ra and Rb are bonded;
• A1a represents an ether bond or a thioether bond;
• L1a represents a single bond or a divalent linking group having 1 to 20 carbon atoms optionally containing a hetero atom;
• and * represents a bonding site;
• wherein “v” is 0 or 1;
• “w” is an integer of 0 to 2;
• RA represents any one of a hydrogen atom, a fluorine atom, a methyl group, and a trifluoromethyl group;
• each R11 independently represents a hydrogen atom, a halogen atom, a linear, branched, or cyclic acyloxy group having 2 to 8 carbon atoms optionally substituted with a halogen atom, a linear, branched, or cyclic alkyl group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms optionally substituted with a halogen atom, or a linear, branched, or cyclic alkoxy group having 1 to 6 carbon atoms optionally substituted with a halogen atom;
• A1 represents a single bond or a linear, branched, or cyclic alkylene group having 1 to 10 carbon atoms optionally having an ether bond between a carbon-carbon bond thereof;
• “a” is an integer satisfying 0≤a≤5+2w−b;
• and “b” is an integer of 1 to 3.